AM Batteries raises $25M in Series A funding led by Anzu Partners

AM Batteries, a battery-tech startup, has raised $25 million in Series A funding, the startup exclusively tells Axios.

Why it matters: Startups working on novel battery technologies are continuing to attract venture capital in droves due to demand driven by increasing EV production.

Details: Anzu Partners led the all-equity round and will take a board seat. TDK Ventures, Foothill Ventures, Toyota Ventures, Zeon Ventures, SAIC Capital, VinFast and others participated in the round.

• AM Batteries CEO Yan Wang declined to disclose the round’s valuation.

Context: Auto manufacturers like GM and Ford have invested billions of dollars to develop their own battery supply chains to address bottlenecks and pricing swings.

How it works: AM Batteries makes a dry-mix treatment for lithium-ion electrodes that Wang says is more energy efficient by bypassing energy-intensive elements common in construction of traditional lithium-ion batteries.

• Wang estimates that roughly 47% of energy consumption in the battery manufacturing process is from the slurry application and drying processes, which involve creating a liquid mix of chemicals that coat the electrode and then dries prior to assembly.
• The dry-mix can apply to the current generation of lithium-ion batteries, with a focus on EV batteries, but Wang says the mix can easily be adapted for emerging types of batteries like sodium or sulfate.

State of play: Wang says he is talking with three auto manufacturers to test the electrode treatment at their facilities, but declined to identify which companies he was in discussion with outside the three auto investors from the Series A.